Friday, November 06, 2009

Did you back a winner in the Melbourne Cup? If not, never fear, because Freebie Friday is here!

Today we have TWO competitions to enter, and there are SEVEN chances to win! You can enter both competitions and submit entries each day. Please note the different closing dates for each competition.

Prize #1:Scanpan Classic Roaster

Love a Sunday roast but dread the prospect of washing up? The kind folk at KitchenwareDirect have kindly donated TWO Scanpan roasting pans that will put an end to your washing-up tears. Bake a chicken, roast a side of beef or caramelise vegetables to your heart's content - then rejoice as the sticky residue slides effortlessly off the ceramic titanium non-stick coating.

Like all Scanpan Classic products, this roaster tray is guaranteed for life to never chip, flake, blister, or crack. If you miss out on winning this prize, you can get your own from KitchenwareDirect for only $119 - that's less than half the recommended retail price!

The winning entry will be decided on the basis of originality and/or creativity. Readers may submit one entry per day. Judge's decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

The Scanpan Roaster competition closes on Friday 20/11/09 at 5.30pm AEST. The two winners will be announced on Grab Your Fork on Monday 23/11/09.

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Prize #2:Movie passes to The Boys Are Back

Our second giveaway is for in-season movie passes to The Boys Are Back. Directed by David Hicks (Shine) and starring Clive Owen (Closer and Gosford Park), this new Australian film was primarily shot in the beautiful countryside of South Australia.

The film is based on the memoirs of Simon Carr, a writer and columnist who found himself suddenly responsible for bringing up two sons following the tragic death of his wife. It's a story about family, coping with crisis, dealing with life, and a father's new-found parenting philosophy to "just say yes".

Carr said that he originally wrote the memoir "to tell what it was like for a single father to bring up two boys in an all-male household."

The movie soundtrack includes music by Icelandic band Sigur Rós, Australian grunge group Mayfield, and original compositions by Hal Lindes (ex-Dire Straits).

Leave a comment on this post and tell us what's one rule you would, or do instil as a parent? It doesn't have to be complex - "eat your vegetables", "clean your room" or "dont run with scissors" will do, although originality, creativity and/or humour counts!

The winning entry will be decided on the basis of originality, creativity and/or humour. Readers may submit one entry per day. Judge's decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

The Boys Are Back competition closes on Friday 13/11/09 at 5.30pm AEST. The five winners will be announced on Grab Your Fork on Monday 16/11/09.

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Luke's mum with copies of his new book The Songs of Sapa

Don't forget you still have one week left to enter the Freebie Friday competition to win a copy of Luke Nguyen's lastest book, The Songs of Sapa. You've been watching his series, Luke Nguyen's Vietnam on SBS - now get the book to make all the recipes! Enter now!

The first thing I would cook in the pan would have to be a roast chook with vegies. Believe it or not, after many years of cooking, it's something I've never done! Might have something to do with not having a super roasting pan...

First thing would be what I call Twitter Eggplants. It's a fantastic recipe for lebanese stuffed eggplants, with lamb, rice, and pinenuts....swimming in a devine tomato bath. Found recipe on twitter....food of the gods.

Were I to become a parent, I would force my children to have good memories. This is essential in my opinion because every good ninja has to memorise reams and reams of data about his or her target: their sleeping patterns, their romantic liaisons, their tooth-brushing schedule, and so on. It is also essential to surviving in the field - what if you forget where the nearest ammunition cache is, or where you slayed your treacherous partner?

And, of course, you must never forget your boss' favourite food. Especially when you are placed on ninja-catering duty. Since I, as any parent, would wish my children to grow up in my spitting image, this is what I would instil in them. Besides, of course, being awesome.

what's the first thing you would you cook in this roasting tray? That's easy, the greatest roast meat of them all - A leg of lamb. Nothing complex, seasoned well, some slivers of garlic and rosemary (from our herb garden) sprigs crammed into shallow holes in the meat, a few potatoes and maybe some capsicum to roast as well. If the beetroot in our garden is ready, maybe some of that too. Once its all done then a gravy made on the pan juices, a little red wine, plain flour and water from steaming the broad beans, again from our garden if it needed.

The first thing I would cook would be a family favourite in our house... Tatws Popty! Its a welsh dish that's a combination between a roast and a stew. Using potatoes, lamb pieces onions, carrots and the meat/vegetables juices - one bowl full is not enough!

As for being a parent myself, the main rule in our house it "ensure you always tell the truth". Children always tell the truth until they are taught to lie.... sadly it's a fact. As they grow, they imitate us especially when we do the wrong thing! SO in our house no matter what - the truth rules!! Even when it comes down to my cooking - they have to tell me the truth!! LOL!!

I think the first thing I would cook would be a cranberry glazed turkey with sausage, dried cranberry and apple stuffing surrounding it. It's become the new tradition of my family for me, the youngest capable girl in the family, to cook Thanksgiving dinner- and I could use all the help I can get!

the first thing i'd cook in the roaster would roast pork with dill roast potatoes, pumpkin, onions with lots of crispy crackling! server with a homemade version of ikea meatball gravy (it was meant for roast pork believe me!(. YUM!

the first thing I would cook is roasted pork ... ooo the crackling crispy skin with the tiny bit of fat which adds to the chewyness...and that succulent piece of meat that sinks between you teeth…. *drools*

I'm inspired by your recent nose-to-tail post, and would really love to have a go at roasting a pig's head. I'm pretty adventurous in the kitchen, except when it comes to non-standard meat cuts - living in Hobart, offal is just not all that common and I haven't tried much. So, pig's head would the first thing I'd cook, as the Scanpan roaster looks like it would the right size!

I would definitely use it to make duck confit. I have now collected enough duck fat that if i put about 2kg of duck maryland it and pour the fat over it, it should be about 1 layer. Pop it in the oven at about 120deg and let it simmer away slowly for a 1.5-2hrs until it falls off the bone.Then i would pull it out of the fat, and grill it for that awesome crispy skin!

Wow. That does not sound the least bit appetizing. Rather; I would bake a cake using the roasting pan to discover whether a quality piece of cookware can save my baking from the horrors my rubbish rental 'Chef-O-Master Deluxe' oven continuously inflicts upon their delicate dispostition. Please, I can't bear anymore soggy-in-the-middle-crispy-on-the-bottom versions of the heavenly 'Tres Leches' cake.

In a pre-heated oven, drizzle olive oil and scatter some crushed garlic into the pan.Roughly cut and microwave the potatoes in a microwave container with lid on.Pour in coarse semolina and toss to coat the potatoes.Lay out the potatoes on the roasting pan, and drizzle more olive oil. Scatter some more garlic because you can never have enough.

The semolina gives you super crunchy golden potatoes, although there's a lot of scrubbing to get the charcoalled semolina off a non-stick.

I've never actually cooked a roast, I know, shock, horror, as I've always been a pasta and dessert kind of gal. So I'd christen the roasting pan by attempting my very first roast. Beef of course because I love the yorkshire puddings that traditionally go with it.

It would have to be something grand (for me at least) for the roasting pan's first outing. My favourite roast is shoulder of lamb, studded with slivers of garlic and sprigs of rosemary and rubbed with olive oil before being sprinkled with salt and cracked pepper. Then you roast it slooooow, until it's falling apart tender. There'd be some potatoes roasting under the lamb (which would be on a rack), and some onions and carrots, all absorbing the lovely lamby, garlicky juices. When it was cooked, I'd use those juices to make a rich, red-wine gravy, scraping up all the browned goodness from the bottom of the pan. Oh dear, I made myself hungry!

I'd roast a chicken for sure. It's my favourite meal to make ever and nothing compliments a roast chicken more perfectly than an awesome gravy (which IMO, can only be made with the caramelized bits left at the end of roasting)! It'd be wonderful to have the caramelized bits slide off the roasting pan easily rather than having to scrape any little bit I can get like I usually do.